Blizzard, Woodbury
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Woodbury forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 42.390, -96.045 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard in Iowa, November 10, 1998
Snow accumulating 2 to 12 inches combined with winds stronger than 60 mph caused damage to trees and power lines with resultant power outages. Because of blowing and drifting snow with zero visibilities, many roads were closed and people were stranded in vehicles.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 11 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $250,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 11
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS FSD wrote it up.
Snow accumulating 2 to 12 inches combined with winds stronger than 60 mph caused damage to trees and power lines with resultant power outages. Because of blowing and drifting snow with zero visibilities, many roads were closed and people were stranded in vehicles. Businesses and schools including colleges and universities were forced to close as the blizzard shut down the area. The blizzard was preceded in part of the area by heavy rain and thunder with rain changing quickly to snow.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
11 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.
Blizzard, Buena Vista
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Buena Vista forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 42.736, -95.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Cherokee
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Cherokee forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 42.736, -95.624 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Clay
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Clay forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 43.083, -95.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Dickinson
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Dickinson forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 43.378, -95.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Ida
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Ida forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 42.387, -95.513 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Lyon
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Lyon forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 43.381, -96.210 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, O'Brien
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- O'Brien forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 43.084, -95.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Osceola
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Osceola forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 43.379, -95.624 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Plymouth
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Plymouth forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 42.738, -96.214 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Sioux
- When
- November 10, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
- Where
- Sioux forecast zone
- Property damage
- $23,000
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 43.083, -96.178 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Blizzard
- Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Wind in Wisconsin, November 10 to 11, 1998
- Tornado in Missouri, November 10, 1998
- High Wind in Kentucky, November 10, 1998
- High Wind in Iowa, November 10, 1998
- High Wind in Wisconsin, November 10, 1998
- High Wind in Wisconsin, November 10, 1998
- Tornado and High Wind in Michigan, November 10 to 11, 1998
- High Wind in Michigan, November 10 to 11, 1998
- High Wind in Iowa, November 10, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Indiana, November 10, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Illinois, November 10, 1998
- High Wind in Michigan, November 10 to 11, 1998
More
Every storm in Iowa in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, November 1998
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5675637, 5676236, 5676237, 5676238, 5676239, 5676240, 5676241, 5676348, 5676349, 5676350, 5676351.